Mr. Speaker, we have just spent $12 million for absolutely nothing. This is money citizens will have to pay.

Will the minister admit that the reason she is faced today with a worldwide campaign by Greenpeace, not just Greenpeace Canada but Greenpeace International, which has condemned her incompetence in this matter, the reason is she is incapable of considering an alternative to the least costly solution, which will cost twice as much as initially estimated and which is also the most dangerous one?

Mr. Speaker, the Greenpeace campaign stresses how important it is to refloat the Irving Whale . I hope Greenpeace will acknowledge there has been only one government in the past 20 years that had a policy for refloating.

Unfortunately, when the hon. member for Lac-Saint-Jean was Minister of the Environment, the Irving Whale was at the bottom, and there was no question of refloating. We are going to refloat it, over the protests of the Bloc members, and I am glad Greenpeace acknowledges the fact that refloating is important to prevent a crisis as a result of the leaks that are now occurring. That is why fishermen, the population and the RCMs on the Magdalen Islands support the policy adopted by the Government of Canada.

Mr. Speaker, two weeks ago in Halifax the solicitor general announced the second phase of a national program to help protect the young and the vulnerable from sexual abuse at the hands of people in positions of trust.

Could the solicitor general tell the House how the new program would protect our children from potential sexual abuse?

Herb GrayLeader of the Government in the House of Commons and Solicitor General of Canada

Mr. Speaker, the federal government is working with the Canadian Association of Volunteer Bureaus to carry out a program to educate voluntary organizations on the need for screening people who are seeking employment or volunteer positions working with children or other vulnerable individuals.

The program involves sending briefing books and videos to over 200 volunteer bureaus across Canada and to some 1,900 police services. There will also be a series of workshops conducted in over 200 volunteer bureau areas.

This will supplement the program I announced last year of using the Canadian police information system computers managed by the RCMP to provide a screening system to help prevent people involved in sex abuse from taking up positions as volunteers or employees when it comes to working with children or vulnerable individuals.

The program is a worthwhile one and responds to the objectives of all Canadians. I hope it will have the support of all members of the House.

Mr. Speaker, all Canadians are aware of the horrific torture of three Ottawa teens and the death of 17-year old Sylvain Leduc at the hands of a vicious youth gang.

The minister is aware the studies his department has received by noted criminologists state that young offenders believe there will be no serious consequences for criminal action and they will commit unlawful acts that include torture and violence.

Would someone on that side of the House explain why the minister will not put severe consequences in the Young Offenders Act for brutal, violent, sadistic crimes committed by young offenders?

Herb GrayLeader of the Government in the House of Commons and Solicitor General of Canada

Mr. Speaker, the government has brought forward legislation to tighten up the Young Offenders Act and provide more severe penalties. The law has been adopted. It will go a long way to responding to the kinds of concerns raised by my hon. friend.

At the same time, the justice committee of the House has been mandated to carry out an overall review of the work with respect to young offenders. I hope it will be able to take into account the understandable concerns of my hon. friend. I appreciate his raising this important point.

Mr. Speaker, I remind the minister that these types of crimes are showing up more and more often and that they need to be stopped. If he is referring to Bill C-37, forget it; it will not do the trick.

I have a supplementary question. When will the minister change the Young Offenders Act so the names and pictures of violent and sadistic gang members such as the Ace Crew, regardless of their age, become available to the general public for its own protection?

Herb GrayLeader of the Government in the House of Commons and Solicitor General of Canada

Mr. Speaker, this information is available to and used by law enforcement agencies. The hon. member's suggestion is one that can be given active consideration in the course of the wide ranging and urgent review of young offenders provisions currently under way in the justice committee.

I urge my hon. friend and his colleagues to take that review seriously and participate in the hearings so we will have a good result in the interests of all Canadians.

Recently, the Globe and Mail revealed that some people have managed to find a way to follow the advice of the Minister of the Environment, who wished to see Canada transform its environmental challenges into economic opportunities. Despite its regulations, Canada is in fact exporting hazardous waste to the third world.

Does the minister confirm her departmental employees' complaints of being so short of resources that they cannot assume their responsibilities and apply the regulations on hazardous waste exports properly?

Mr. Speaker, today the minister is avoiding direct answers with surprising regularity. I shall, however, try a supplementary.

Does the minister understand that she ought to ensure that her departmental employees apply existing regulations properly, rather than seek to set national standards and to continually meddle in areas of provincial jurisdiction?

Mr. Speaker, on the contrary, I am trying to follow the lead of the former Minister of the Environment, the hon. member for Lac-Saint-Jean, who stated that the federal government had not only a duty to be concerned about the environment, but a responsibility. And I endorse that statement by the hon. member for Lac-Saint-Jean.